Stormwater Education and Outreach Program

Stormwater Educator:

Raising Awareness and Providing Solutions to Cigarette Litter

It is estimated that several trillion cigarette butts are littered worldwide every year. That's billions of cigarettes flicked, one at a time, on our sidewalks, streets, nature trails, parks, and other public places every single day. 80 percent of butts on the ground find their way into our storm drain system and end up in our local creeks and streams.

In fact, cigarettes are the most littered item in America and the world. Cigarette filters are made of cellulose acetate tow, a form of plastic, NOT COTTON, and they can take decades to degrade. Not only does cigarette litter ruin even the most picturesque setting, but the toxic residue in cigarette filters is damaging to the environment, and littered butts cause numerous fires every year, some of them fatal.

Flatbranch Creek - Downtown, Columbia, MO.These discarded butts appear after every small rain storm in downtown, Columbia, littered cigarette butts like these work there way into the storm drain system, then our local creeks and streams, when thrown on the ground or out the window of a car. Please remember cigarette butts are litter.